


Need A Hand?

by artsakira



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist (Anime 2003), Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:06:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28085907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artsakira/pseuds/artsakira
Summary: “Not an asshole. More like...I know you talk shit. And you do that because you think you’re so smart,” Ed pointed at Roy, who was still stunned.“Sorry. I think I had too much to drink,” Ed groaned and drank a gulp of water.Ed goes to a party to get drunk and runs into the TA he's been avoiding.
Relationships: Edward Elric/Roy Mustang
Comments: 6
Kudos: 59
Collections: Roy/Ed Week 2020





	Need A Hand?

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a couple of days ago and forgot to post it on time oops.

**Modern AU**

**“You think you’re so smart”**

Ed’s pretty sure he’s not drunk yet. The room isn’t spinning and his thoughts still feel like his own. He grimaced as he took another swig of the concoction in his cup. How was he not drunk yet? He’d been trying all evening to no avail.

“Ed! Ed!” he looked over to Winry. She doesn’t like to admit she’s a lightweight, but she only had a few White Claws and she’s lost it. He sighed as she beckoned him over.

“Do you want to go home yet?” he asked. She shook her head as she giggled.

“I want- you’ve got to show them your...thing...like, the party trick,” she giggled out. Ed looked over to Paninya, Ling, and some unfamiliar faces. Paninya’s already seen it, but she just stood silently with an arm around Winry.

“Uh…” he stared at the faces. They started to swim a little. Maybe he was drunk. 

“Does anyone need help with anything? Like, do you need a hand?” he asked. Some people shook their heads in confusion.

“I think you need...a hand,” he then detached his prosthetic and tossed it lightly. It thunked on the floor as some of them screamed and some laughed deliriously. One of them was crying. Winry was laughing so hard she couldn’t breathe.

“That’s all I got,” he sighed, bending down and picking it back up. He turned over to Winry.

“Hey, Win, I think we should go. I’m not really having a great time,” he said softly. She wiped some tears away from her eyes.

“Really? You’ve got to just, like, just talk to people. If you’re still unhappy later we can go,” she responded. Ed wiped a hand over his face, bile at the back of his throat. 

“Okay…” he moaned. The group of people kept giggling. Ed felt awkward, so he quietly dipped back to his corner. His phone buzzed in his pocket. Al responded to his text.

_ Al: _

_ at least you can go to parties :( _

_ have fun for me!!! _

Ed glared at the screen. He felt a little bit of guilt before putting the phone away. He downed the rest of his drink and scanned for a garbage can. His eyes widened and his stomach dropped. Fucking Roy was here. He immediately turned and squished his way to a different area of the house. He knew that he shouldn’t have come. Winry said this would be  _ so _ fun. Take a break from studying! Get some good old American college experience. Play beer pong or something. Ed had to admit that he was curious. He never went to parties in high school and thought that he should go to at least one before he graduated. Turns out that parties are really fucking boring when you hate talking to people. He thought that he could just stick to Winry’s side, but she was all over the place and doing things. And Ed thought he could just stand in the corner and not run into anyone he knows. Nope. Maybe Ed should just leave without Winry. 

“Edward?” Ed froze. He looked around and made eye contact with Roy Mustang. This was so fucking great. Wow. His hands itched to strangle someone. Anyone, really, but preferably himself.

“Oh. Hey,” he responded tentatively.

“I didn’t expect to see you tonight,” Roy was smiling smugly. He always acted so fucking smarmy. 

“Yeah, I’m, uh, here with my friend,” Ed rubbed a hand on the back of his neck as he looked away. Winry probably wouldn’t check her texts if he asked her for help. Maybe he could get Al to call him.

“I’m friends with the guy who owns this place. He thought this would be fun, but I know he’ll regret it once he sees the mess tomorrow morning.” Roy looked all relaxed and shit. Ed didn’t know how to discreetly text Al. He fumbled with his phone.

_ Ed: _

_ Al I need help escaping my TA _

_ Call me asap _

“Uh. Cool. I thought you just did biology all the time,” Ed forced out, still looking at his phone. Roy laughed at that. He kept his phone in his hand instead of slipping it back into his pocket.

“While I do spend hideous amounts of time on biology, I do have a life.” Roy sounded passive-aggressive. Al told him, though, that he was bad at recognizing passive-aggressiveness. 

“You know, I’m actually glad I’ve run into you. I’ve been meaning to talk and I don’t think you’ve been receiving my emails,” Roy shifted his weight onto his other leg. Ed swallowed. He’d gotten the emails. He just couldn’t bring himself to respond to any of them.

“Oh, sorry. My email’s been kinda fucked recently,” Ed made up. Roy just nodded.

“Could I pull you aside for a minute? Somewhere quieter?” Roy suggested. Ed scanned wildly for Winry, but she was somewhere else. Ed checked his phone, but Al hadn’t responded. He was probably asleep. Fuck. He needed more friends.

“Yeah. Totally. We’ve just, uh, gotta be quick because I’ve got a friend and she wants to go back soon-”

“No problem! I just need a minute,” Roy smiled at him. Ed’s stomach dropped again. Maybe he drank too much. He followed Roy down some stairs and they ended up outside near some trees and bushes. It was a little cold out and Ed wished he dressed warmer. His wrist ached like a bitch.

“So, Edward,” Roy started. Ed was so tense he felt like he was gonna die. His eyes were trained hard on the ground. He wouldn’t be surprised if his eyeballs just bulged out. 

“How has this semester been?” Roy asked. It was an easy lowball to start the conversation.

“It’s been okay. Lots of work,” Ed responded. It’s been shit, actually. Total shit. 

“Yeah. How have you been keeping up with your work for bio?” Roy asked. Roy knew the fucking answer to that. Roy helped grade work for their class. Of course, he’d know Ed was behind.

“It’s a struggle, but I’ve talked to the professor and she’s been really nice about it…” Ed tried laughing and sounding casual, but he trailed off. By that, he meant that he emailed her once at the beginning of the semester. He saw Roy nod.

“Yeah, I’ve noticed you’re missing a lot of work. I was surprised because you show a lot of understanding during our seminar meetings,” he said. Ed bit the inside of his mouth. Al always told him that he needed to breathe in order to relax, but he couldn’t find the air. 

“I’m working on it, don’t worry. I’ll have it in before the final.” Ed waved a hand and leaned towards the door. It was cold and he thought the conversation was over.

“I’m not sure if we can give you a grade at this point, though. That’s why I’m concerned.” Ed totally froze. His head was aching. How had he not noticed that? It hit him all at once. There was a horrible pounding in his hand. He lifted a hand to his forehead.

“I’ll...I’ll email Izumi about it,” he tried saying calmly. 

“I’ve talked with her and she’s on the same page as me. I’m concerned because you show an outstanding understanding of the material and competence, but your work just isn’t matching up to par with your in-class participation. I’m worried if there’s something going on or…” Roy trailed off. His eyebrows were furrowed. He actually looked concerned if Ed could believe it. He always acted like such an asshole know-it-all in their seminars. Ed sighed and took the hand away from his face. He scrunched his eyes shut, felt the burn, and opened them up again. He looked straight at Roy.

“Look, I do have some stuff going on and I’ve talked to Izumi about it already. It’s fine. Thanks for the concern, but my friend is inside waiting for me-”

“Talk to me. I can work something out for you and Izumi. I don’t want your grade to suffer because of extraneous circumstances,” Roy continued to push.

“How about I shoot you an email?” Ed proposed.

“If you’re not comfortable sharing all the details, you can keep it as vague as possible, but I’m here to help you academically. I promise that I won’t-”

“Thanks,” Ed interrupted him sharply, “but I’m not feeling the best to talk right now.” As he said that, he quickly turned and took a couple of paces. He bent over and threw up into the bushes. He thought he heard Roy exclaiming something behind him, but he was focused on the burning in his throat. He spit a couple of times and wiped his mouth before straightening up again.

“Sit on this bench. I’ll grab you water,” Roy ushered him to sit down before disappearing. Ed wanted to argue, but instead, he slumped down. He felt exhausted. Or delirious. Or both. He checked his phone again, but there were no updates from Winry or Al. It was already 2:34 am. He groaned. He wasn’t gonna get much sleep, but he probably should have known that when he agreed to go to this stupid party with Winry. He never wanted to go to one of these again. Roy appeared with water and napkins. 

“Are you okay?” he asked. Ed squinted at him.

“You’re acting so weird right now. You’re usually kind of an asshole in class,” Ed admitted. Roy looked stunned.

“Not an asshole. More like...I know you talk shit. And you do that because you think you’re so smart,” Ed pointed at Roy who was still stunned.

“Sorry. I think I had too much to drink,” Ed groaned and drank a gulp of water. Roy cleared his throat.

“Clearly I misjudged your sobriety. I’m sorry,” he apologized.

“Why are you the one saying sorry? I just called you an asshole. Kind of,” Ed asked.

“I’m coming from a place of concern, mostly. I see that you’re not in the best spot and maybe I should have just left you alone. I’m sorry, again. I am,” he repeated. Ed made a face at him.

“Maybe you’re not as bad as I thought you were,” he admitted. At that, Roy grinned a little.

“I grow on people if they spend enough time with me. Do you want help finding your friend? I think it’s time for you to get back home,” Roy asked. Ed groaned.

“Ugh, Winry. She’s probably wasted by now. She was gonna let me crash at her and her girlfriend’s place, but I think I’m just gonna head to my own place instead,” Ed got up to his feet and stretched a little.

“Is it far? I can drive you if that’s okay. Like an apology,” Roy offered. Ed scoffed. 

“It’s fine. I need some air to clear my head and it’s not a terrible walk.” He plugged his address into his phone. 

“Twenty minutes? Come on, let me drive you.”

Ed didn’t expect the night to end with him in Roy Mustang’s car. He told Winry that he was leaving with Roy Mustang and she made a dirty joke. Ed almost hit her but contained it somehow. And now he was sitting in the front seat of Roy’s car as he drove.

“Please email me tomorrow morning. We can talk again when it’s a better time.” Ed just nodded and hummed in response. He leaned to the side and rested his head on the cold window pane.

“Are you okay?” Roy asked. Ed opened his mouth to say ‘I’m fine,’ but the words caught in his throat. Suddenly, everything hit him at once. Everything that he wanted to forget with a party and alcohol, but he couldn’t run away from. 

“My brother’s got cancer,” he whispered hoarsely. His face contorted. Roy stayed silent.   
“I haven’t told anyone that,” he laughed without any humor. 

“I haven’t told any of our friends. Not even Winry. It doesn’t seem real. It’s- He’s so young.” 

“They’ve been running a million tests. But they finally diagnosed it,” Ed continued, spilling out. He closed his eyes and felt hot water behind his eyelids. 

“I’m all he’s got. He’s still just a kid, I-I gotta drive him to the hospital and everything... He hasn’t even finished high school yet…” Ed kept his face turned towards the window. 

“I’m sorry. I had no idea,” Roy responded softly. Ed groaned.

“And it’s not even like I’m the one with cancer. I should be fine. I don’t know why I’m doing so shitty in class. This isn’t like me at all,” Ed wiped a hand over his face. 

“No it’s-this situation is just a hard one to be in. I’m sure if you talk to Izumi-”

“I’ve told her about all this already. And she knows. I’m just so disappointed in myself,” Ed kept on blabbering. 

“Edward, I think you’re drunk,” Roy mentioned nervously. 

“No way,” he rebutted, but when he stared out the car window, he realized how hard it was for him to focus. Maybe he was a little out of it.

“If you want to talk when you’re in a more stable state of mind, we can definitely do that. I’ll give you my number,” Roy said. Ed raised his eyebrows.

“Are you hitting on me?” he asked, not even bothering to smile or anything. His spirits felt too low from talking about Al.

“What-no, Edward please, I’m your TA,” Roy spluttered. 

“Not for long, I mean. The semester’s almost over,” Ed pointed out. He saw Roy squint out the window and pull in towards an apartment complex. His apartment complex. They were there.

“Do you need help getting-you know what, I’m going to help you,” Roy started, but rushed over when Ed slumped against the side of the car when he stood up. He found it hard to be upright. Roy tentatively tried putting an arm under Ed to help him walk, but Ed still felt like a dead weight. 

“Edward, you have to try and walk,” Roy grunted. Ed laughed at that.

“You could say that you need...a hand,” Ed said sneakily, standing upright and popping his prosthetic hand off. Roy’s face was in complete shock. Ed lost it at the and keeled over laughing.

“Your face!” he continued to laugh so hard he felt like he couldn’t breathe. Roy was saying something, but Ed waved a hand.   
“I got it, I got it. I can walk and everything. I’ll text you later!” Ed waved. Roy looked unbelieving, but somehow Ed got back okay. He slumped down into bed without changing clothes and blacked out after not too long.

Ed woke up with the worst motherfucking headache and a billion messages on his phone. He groaned as the afternoon light flooded in through the window. As he turned on his phone, bright light seared his eyes.

“Agh, why do I do things…” he grumbled. He squinted to his messages. Winry left a couple. Al asked him if he got back home alright. He saw an unknown number and squinted harder.

_ Roy: _

_ Hey Edward, this is Roy Mustang. We talked a bit last night about your assignments for Izumi’s class, but you were feeling unwell, so I helped you get home. Please message me back when you’re feeling up to it. Feel better. _

Ed groaned even louder. He thought back to last night, but it was all blurry. He vaguely remembered interacting with Roy. He cringed at remembering the car ride. Shit. He said a lot more than he meant to, but Roy wasn’t that much of a dick about it. Maybe he was wrong about the guy. He nervously wrote out a message.

_ Ed: _

_ Thanks man for putting up with me. Wanna grab coffee later? _

He stared in anticipation, berated himself, but then got excited at three dots appearing on Roy’s end.

_ Roy: _

_ Of course!  _

Ed smiled at his phone. He stretched a little and took some aspirin. As he looked out the window, the light wasn’t as annoying. So maybe Roy wasn’t half bad. And they were getting coffee. Yeah, Ed’s got a million assignments to catch up on and the semester isn’t over just yet, but maybe things were looking a little bit up.


End file.
